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| Saturday,
October 14, 2000, Chandigarh, India |
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Telemedicine project launched at
PGI CHANDIGARH, Oct 13 — The Union Health and Family Welfare Minister, Dr C.P. Thakur, today formally launched the “telemedicine technology project for optimising medical resources’’ at the PGI today, linking it with AIIMS, Delhi, and Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute ( SGPGI) at Lucknow for exchanging medical opinion of experts online. The project, sponsored by the Ministry of Information Technology, has been jointly developed by the Centre for Electronics Design and Technology of India (CEDTI), SAS Nagar and C-DAC, Pune. To begin with, the departments of radiology, pathology and cardiology will use these facilities. Dr B.D. Gupta, medical adviser- cum coordinator of the project, said the new facility will enable doctors to maintain electronic patient records of their patients, refer them to any expert in the connected hospitals for specialised treatment or seek medical opinion as regards latest techniques. The facility will soon be linked to district-level hospitals, which can seek the advice of experts in these hospitals by transferring patients’ investigation reports online and video conferencing. The minister was also shown how online telemedicine is being practised with an ordinary telephone line as well as on the ISDN channel in clinicalpractice in Ahmedabad. Mr Ragesh Shah, chairman of the online telemedcine research Institute, Ahmedabad, showed how the system can be used to transmit online EC, CT scan, MRI,pathology slides and reports, Doctors prescription as also moving images. The patient can now have direct access to his/her doctor and can provide useful information and ECG recording by using telephone lines. All a patient needs to do is to place the event recorded ( EC) on his/her chest, push a button, wait for a minute for recording the ECG. After recording, the patient or his relation has to dial the telephone number of their doctor and place the equipment on the mouth piece of the telephone and press the same button again. ER converts the electronic signals into audio-signals, which again get converted into electronic signals on the doctors personal computer. Earlier, the minister inaugurated a hi-tech CT-based radiotherapy simulator at the Department of Radiotherapy, PGI. Meanwhile, various employees’ unions and members of faculty met the minister in the office of the Director to discuss their demands and grievances. He also had a meeting with the senior faculty members and administrators before leaving for Delhi. |
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Experts discuss AIDS control measures CHANDIGARH, Oct 13 — AIDS control in India is faced with twin problems of lack of laboratory diagnostic facilities at the peripheral health Institutions and low attendance at over 500 STD clinics across the country. This was stated by the Union Health and family Welfare Minister, Dr C.P. Thakur, in his address after inaugurating the 11th Regional meeting of the International Union Against Sexually Transmitted Infections ( SE Asia and West Pacific) and 24th National Conference of Indian Association for the study of sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS’’, which got underway this morning at the PGI. Dr Thakur said that sexually transmitted diseases were some of the commonest throughout the world and ranked within the top 10 conditions, for which adults seek health care services. Dr Thakur said that while it is difficult to know the exact number of Indians with HIV, WHO estimates this to be anywhere up to 5 million. At present, Indians constitute 8 to 10 per cent of the global infection with HIV. The incidence of sexually transmitted diseases is higher in the coastal areas, which subsequently increase the risk of transmission of HIV. The minister also stressed the fact that although effective drug treatment was available, its prohibitive cost (about Rs 2.5 lakh per year) ruled out its use in a resource poor country like India. Dr Thakur disclosed that about 14 million people acquire STDs every year in India and effective treatment of this large population required the use of WHO-developed syndromic approach to management. Health education, integration of reproductive and social health and development of an AIDS control programe like the one in use in Thailand could help to bring this alarming situation under control. Dr Ross Philpot, Australian president of IUSTI, pointed out that maximum number of HIV/STD cases are in this part of the world. However, there is need to strengthen the branch by increasing its area of activities to ensure better results of the control programmes. Dr J.S Bingham, spoke about the effect of the AIDS epidemic in Africa on globalisation. He underscored the difficulties faced by people when they travel and when they are removed from their traditional environments. Prof Bhushan Kumar from the PGI stressed the role of cultural,
social, learning and interpersonal factors along with psychological variables with determined high-risk behaviour. This was followed by a symposium on the management of HIV in a relatively poor country like India. Prof J.K Maniar from Mumbai discussed his experience with nearly 38,000 HIV infected individuals attending an AIDS clinic in Mumbai. He pointed out that fewer than 2 per cent of HIV infected patient in India could afford full anti retroviral therapy. Another feature of the natural history of infection in India was that most patients did not follow up regularly. The average life span was 7 to 10 years for HIV-1 infection and 12 to 18 years for HIV-2 infection. Dr Ratish Basu Roy from the UK discussed medical management in adults and pointed out the objectives for an ideal treatment regimen. The drugs ought to be prescribed in a reasonable order so that future treatment options were not compromised. The side effects should be minimised. Dr Verapol Chandeying from Thailand spoke about the diagnosis and management pertaining to HIV infection in pregnant women. He discussed various modalities of drug therapy used to control the vertical transmission of this infection from mother to child. Dr P Janet Say from New Zealand discussed the role of sexual assualt and abuse being a key dominator for the development of high-risk sexual behaviour in young people. A recent study has shown that nearly 70 per cent of the young women infected with HIV had a history of sexual abuse. Experts deliberated on the role of infection in the development of tumours during a session on human papilloma virus, which is responsible for genital warts as well as the development of genital tumours. The viral infection is common in many parts of the world, including India, and may account for the high incidence of the cancer of the uterine cervix in India. This was followed by a lecture on the development of arthritis in patients who had sexually transmitted infections. |
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Waiting for a philanthropist CHANDIGARH, Oct 13 — Pain and disillusionment have added years to Ajit Kumar’s actual age. With his kidneys having failed for the second time within three months he is not sure of what life and future has in store for him. Today he awaits a helping hand while residing in Khuda Lahora with his wife. The only hope for him is another kidney transplant which will help him live for another few years. Although he has a ready donor in his younger brother, he awaits a helping hand as he has no money to be spent on transplant for the second time. He needs at least Rs 2.5 lakh for the transplantation. Life has never been a bed of roses for the 26-year-old Ajit Kumar who shouldered the responsibility of his family at the age of 14 when his father was murdered in Bihar way back in year 1988 by militants. He acted father to his two brothers and a sister, trying to get his life back in first gear. Life gave him another jolt when he was robbed while he was staying at his village in Bihar. He somehow managed to bear the shock and sold his agriculture land in order to start work again. He got married three years ago and everything came on the right track till he fell sick last year. Doctors discovered that he had total renal failure. He was then advised to shift to Chandigarh by the doctors in February this year. He sold his entire property. His kidney was transplanted in April and was donated by his mother. Unfortunately the same symptoms appeared again after two months and his new kidney was also damaged. Since then his young wife is doing all the running about required to take him to hospital time and again for dialysis. Fear overshadows her blank looks when she talks about her husband’s illness. She has gone from pillar to post asking for monetary help. Her visits to the Red Cross did not prove fruitful. He needs Rs 2.5 lakh for the
operatation and thousands of rupees for medicines to be taken after the transplant. Anybody who is willing to help him can contact him at Khuda Lahora or can contact the Medical Superintendent, PGI. |
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UT sub-junior volleyball
championship begins CHANDIGARH, Oct 13 — The two-day UT Sub-Junior volleyball championship for boys and girls began here today at Shivalik Public School, Sector 41. As many as 25 teams from various institutions were taking part in the meet organised by the Chandigarh Volleyball Association. Today’s results are as under: Boys — Government Model High School, Sector 26, beat Government High School, Khuda Lahora 25-4, 25-3; Ajit Karam Singh International Public School, Sector 41, defeated Government High School, Sector 41, 25-23, 25-12; Coaching Centre, Sector 46, beat Government Senior Secondary School, Sector 27, 22-25, 25-9, 25-12. Girls — Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Sector 18, beat Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Sector 27, 25-20, 25-19; Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Sector 8 beat Government Model High School, Sector 26, 25-13, 26-24; Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Sector 18, beat Government Model High School, Sector 32, 25-21, 9-25, 25-15 Rice cricket tournament Veteran athletics |
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